Robotically Serviceable Computing Rack and Sleds

ABSTRACT

Examples may include racks for a data center and sleds for the racks, the sleds arranged to house physical resources for the data center. The sleds and racks can be arranged to be autonomously manipulated, such as, by a robot. The sleds and racks can include features to facilitate automated installation, removal, maintenance, and manipulation by a robot.

RELATED CASE

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Applicationentitled “Framework and Techniques for Pools of Configurable ComputingResources” filed on Nov. 29, 2016 and assigned Ser. No. 62/427,268; U.S.Provisional Patent Application entitled “Scalable System Framework Prime(SSFP) Omnibus Provisional II” filed on Aug. 18, 2016 and assigned Ser.No. 62/376,859; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application entitled“Framework and Techniques for Pools of Configurable Computing Resources”filed on Jul. 22, 2016 and assigned Ser. No. 62/365,969, each of whichis hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments described herein generally relate to data centers andparticularly to racks within a data center.

BACKGROUND

Advancements in networking have enabled the rise in pools ofconfigurable computing resources. A pool of configurable computingresources may be formed from a physical infrastructure includingdisaggregate physical resources, for example, as found in large datacenters. The physical infrastructure can include a number of resourceshaving processors, memory, storage, networking, power, cooling, etc.Management entities of these data centers can aggregate a selection ofthe resources to form servers and/or computing hosts. These hosts cansubsequently be allocated to execute and/or host system SW (e.g., OSs,VMs, Containers, Applications, or the like). A number of challenges toconventional data centers exist. For example, managing (e.g.,installing, replacing, performing maintenance, or the like) the volumeof physical resources spread throughout the data center can be achallenge. Additionally, managing the heat generated by the large numberof physical resources can be a challenge.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a first example data center.

FIG. 2 illustrates a first example rack of a data center.

FIG. 3 illustrates a second example data center.

FIG. 4 illustrates a third example data center.

FIG. 5 illustrates a data center connectivity scheme.

FIG. 6 illustrates a second example rack.

FIG. 7 illustrates a first example sled.

FIG. 8 illustrates a third example rack.

FIG. 9 illustrates a fourth example rack.

FIG. 10 illustrates a second example sled.

FIG. 11 illustrates a fourth example data center.

FIGS. 12A-12E illustrate a fifth example rack.

FIGS. 13A-13B illustrate example portions of a rack.

FIG. 14 illustrates an example of portions of a rack.

FIGS. 15A-15C illustrate example portions of a rack.

FIGS. 16A-16B illustrate example portions of a rack.

FIG. 17 illustrates example portions of a rack.

FIG. 18 illustrates a sixth example rack.

FIG. 19 illustrates a fifth example data center.

FIG. 20 illustrates an example robot for a data center.

FIG. 21 illustrates a first example logic flow.

FIG. 22 illustrates a second example logic flow.

FIG. 23 illustrates an example of a storage medium.

FIG. 24 illustrates an example computing platform.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Data centers may generally be composed of a large number of racks thatcan contain numerous types of hardware or configurable resources (e.g.,processing units, memory, storage, accelerators, networking,fans/cooling modules, power units, etc.). The types of hardware orconfigurable resources deployed in data centers may also be referred toas physical resources or disaggregate elements. It is to be appreciated,that the size and number of physical resources within a data center canbe large, for example, on the order of hundreds of thousands of physicalresources. These physical resources can be pooled to form virtualcomputing platforms for a large number and variety of computing tasks.

Furthermore, these physical resources are often arranged in rackslocated in a warehouse, or multiple warehouses. The present disclosureprovides racks arranged to accept sleds and sleds arranged to house anumber of physical resources. The racks and sleds described herein arearranged to be robotically manipulated; thus, providing a data centerwhere the physical resources as housed in sleds and racks can beserviced (e.g., installed, replaced, removed, manipulated, checked, orthe like) robotically. Said differently, the sleds can be installedand/or removed from the racks without human assistance. Additionally, atleast some of the physical resources can be removed from the sledwithout human assistance. For example, a robot (e.g., robotic arm, forkapparatus, or the like) can be utilized to install and remove sleds fromracks. These, and other features of the present disclosure will bedescribed in greater detail below.

Reference is now made to the drawings, wherein like reference numeralsare used to refer to like elements throughout. In the followingdescription, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details areset forth in order to provide a thorough understanding thereof. It maybe evident, however, that the novel embodiments can be practiced withoutthese specific details. In other instances, known structures and devicesare shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate a descriptionthereof. The intention is to provide a thorough description such thatall modifications, equivalents, and alternatives within the scope of theclaims are sufficiently described.

Additionally, reference may be made to variables, such as, “a”, “b”,“c”, which are used to denote components where more than one componentmay be implemented. It is important to note, that there need notnecessarily be multiple components and further, where multiplecomponents are implemented, they need not be identical. Instead, use ofvariables to reference components in the figures is done for convenienceand clarity of presentation.

FIG. 1 illustrates a conceptual overview of a data center 100 that maygenerally be representative of a data center or other type of computingnetwork in/for which one or more techniques described herein may beimplemented according to various embodiments. As shown in this figure,data center 100 may generally contain a plurality of racks, each ofwhich may house computing equipment comprising a respective set ofphysical resources. In the particular non-limiting example depicted inFIG. 1, data center 100 contains four racks 102A to 102D, which housecomputing equipment comprising respective sets of physical resources(PCRs) 105A to 105D. The present disclosure provides a number of exampleracks (refer to at least FIGS. 2, 6, 8-9, 12A-12E, and 17-18). A moredetailed description of these example racks and feature of these racksto facilitate automated (and/or robotic) manipulation is given below inconjunction with the description of these figures. According to theexample of FIG. 1, a collective set of physical resources 106 of datacenter 100 includes the various sets of physical resources 105A to 105Dthat are distributed among racks 102A to 102D. Physical resources 106may include resources of multiple types, such as—for example—processors,co-processors, accelerators, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs),graphics processing units (GPUs), memory, interconnect components, andstorage. The embodiments are not limited to these examples.

The illustrative data center 100 differs from typical data centers inmany ways. For example, in the illustrative embodiment, the circuitboards (“sleds”) on which components such as CPUs, memory, and othercomponents are placed are designed for increased thermal performance. Inparticular, in the illustrative embodiment, the sleds are shallower thantypical boards. In other words, the sleds are shorter from the front tothe back, where cooling fans are located. This decreases the length ofthe path that air must to travel across the components on the board.Further, the components on the sled are spaced further apart than intypical circuit boards, and the components are arranged to reduce oreliminate shadowing (i.e., one component in the air flow path of anothercomponent). In the illustrative embodiment, processing components suchas the processors are located on a top side of a sled while near memory,such as DIMMs, are located on a bottom side of the sled. As a result ofthe enhanced airflow provided by this design, the components may operateat higher frequencies and power levels than in typical systems, therebyincreasing performance. Furthermore, the sleds are configured to blindlymate with power and data communication cables in each rack 102A, 102B,102C, 102D, enhancing their ability to be quickly removed, upgraded,reinstalled, and/or replaced. Similarly, individual components locatedon the sleds, such as processors, accelerators, memory, and data storagedrives, are configured to be easily upgraded due to their increasedspacing from each other. In the illustrative embodiment, the componentsadditionally include hardware attestation features to prove theirauthenticity.

Furthermore, in the illustrative embodiment, the data center 100utilizes a single network architecture (“fabric”) that supports multipleother network architectures including Ethernet and Omni-Path. The sleds,in the illustrative embodiment, are coupled to switches via opticalfibers, which provide higher bandwidth and lower latency than typicaltwisted pair cabling (e.g., Category 5, Category 5e, Category 6, etc.).Due to the high bandwidth, low latency interconnections and networkarchitecture, the data center 100 may, in use, pool resources, such asmemory, accelerators (e.g., graphics accelerators, FPGAs, ASICs, etc.),and data storage drives that are physically disaggregated, and providethem to compute resources (e.g., processors) on an as needed basis,enabling the compute resources to access the pooled resources as if theywere local. The illustrative data center 100 additionally receives usageinformation for the various resources, predicts resource usage fordifferent types of workloads based on past resource usage, anddynamically reallocates the resources based on this information.

The racks 102A to 102D of the data center 100 may include physicaldesign features that facilitate the automation of a variety of types ofmaintenance tasks. For example, data center 100 may be implemented usingracks that are designed to be robotically-accessed, and to accept andhouse robotically-manipulable resource sleds. Furthermore, in someembodiments, the racks 102A to 102D include integrated power sourcesthat receive a greater voltage than is typical for power sources. Theincreased voltage enables the power sources to provide additional powerto the components on each sled, enabling the components to operate athigher than typical frequencies.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary logical configuration of a rack 202 ofthe data center 100. As shown in FIG. 2, rack 202 may generally house aplurality of sleds, each of which may comprise a respective set ofphysical resources. In the particular non-limiting example depicted inthis figure, rack 202 houses sleds 204-1 to 204-4 comprising respectivesets of physical resources 205-1 to 205-4, each of which constitutes aportion of the collective set of physical resources 206 comprised inrack 202. With respect to FIG. 1, if rack 202 is representative of—forexample—rack 102A, then physical resources 206 may correspond to thephysical resources 105A comprised in rack 102A. The present disclosureprovides a number of example sleds housing physical resources (refer toat least FIGS. 7, 10, and 15A-15C). A more detailed description of theseexample sleds and feature of these sleds to facilitate automated (and/orrobotic) manipulation is given below in conjunction with the descriptionof these figures.

In the context depicted in the example of FIG. 2, physical resources105A may thus be made up of the respective sets of physical resources205-1 to 205-4 comprised in the sleds 204-1 to 204-4 of rack 202. Asdepicted in this illustrative embodiment, physical resources 205-1 to205-4 include physical storage resources 205-1, physical acceleratorresources 205-2, physical memory resources 205-3, and physical computeresources 205-4. The embodiments are not limited to this example. Eachsled may contain a pool of any combination of the various types ofphysical resources (e.g., compute, memory, accelerator, storage). Byhaving robotically accessible and robotically manipulable sledscomprising disaggregated resources, each type of resource can beupgraded independently of each other and at their own optimized refreshrate.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a data center 300 that may generally berepresentative of one in/for which one or more techniques describedherein may be implemented according to various embodiments. In theparticular non-limiting example depicted in FIG. 3, data center 300comprises racks 302-1 to 302-32. In various embodiments, the racks ofdata center 300 may be arranged in such a fashion as to define and/oraccommodate various access pathways. For example, as shown in FIG. 3,the racks of data center 300 may be arranged in such a fashion as todefine and/or accommodate access pathways 311A, 311B, 311C, and 311D. Insome embodiments, the presence of such access pathways may generallyenable automated maintenance equipment, such as robotic maintenanceequipment (e.g., refer to FIG. 19) to physically access the computingequipment housed in the various racks of data center 300 and performautomated maintenance tasks (e.g., replace a failed sled, upgrade asled). In various embodiments, the dimensions of access pathways 311A,311B, 311C, and 311D, the dimensions of racks 302-1 to 302-32, and/orone or more other aspects of the physical layout of data center 300 maybe selected to facilitate such automated operations. The embodiments arenot limited in this context.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a data center 400 that may generally berepresentative of one in/for which one or more techniques describedherein may be implemented according to various embodiments. As shown inFIG. 4, data center 400 may feature an optical fabric 412. Opticalfabric 412 may generally comprise a combination of optical signalingmedia (such as optical cabling) and optical switching infrastructure viawhich any particular sled in data center 400 can send signals to (andreceive signals from) each of the other sleds in data center 400. Thesignaling connectivity that optical fabric 412 provides to any givensled may include connectivity both to other sleds in a same rack andsleds in other racks. In the particular non-limiting example depicted inFIG. 4, data center 400 includes four racks 402A to 402D. Racks 402A to402D house respective pairs of sleds 404A-1 and 404A-2, 404B-1 and404B-2, 404C-1 and 404C-2, and 404D-1 and 404D-2. Thus, in this example,data center 400 comprises a total of eight sleds. Via optical fabric412, each such sled may possess signaling connectivity with each of theseven other sleds in data center 400. For example, via optical fabric412, sled 404A-1 in rack 402A may possess signaling connectivity withsled 404A-2 in rack 402A, as well as the six other sleds 404B-1, 404B-2,404C-1, 404C-2, 404D-1, and 404D-2 that are distributed among the otherracks 402B, 402C, and 402D of data center 400. The embodiments are notlimited to this example.

FIG. 5 illustrates an overview of a connectivity scheme 500 that maygenerally be representative of link-layer connectivity that may beestablished in some embodiments among the various sleds of a datacenter, such as any of example data centers 100, 300, and 400 of FIGS.1, 3, and 4. Connectivity scheme 500 may be implemented using an opticalfabric that features a dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 514.Dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 514 may generally comprise aswitching infrastructure that is capable of receiving communicationsaccording to multiple link-layer protocols via a same unified set ofoptical signaling media, and properly switching such communications. Invarious embodiments, dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 514 maybe implemented using one or more dual-mode optical switches 515. Invarious embodiments, dual-mode optical switches 515 may generallycomprise high-radix switches. In some embodiments, dual-mode opticalswitches 515 may comprise multi-ply switches, such as four-ply switches.In various embodiments, dual-mode optical switches 515 may featureintegrated silicon photonics that enable them to switch communicationswith significantly reduced latency in comparison to conventionalswitching devices. In some embodiments, dual-mode optical switches 515may constitute leaf switches 530 in a leaf-spine architectureadditionally including one or more dual-mode optical spine switches 520.

In various embodiments, dual-mode optical switches may be capable ofreceiving both Ethernet protocol communications carrying InternetProtocol (IP packets) and communications according to a second,high-performance computing (HPC) link-layer protocol (e.g., Intel'sOmni-Path Architecture's, Infiniband) via optical signaling media of anoptical fabric. As reflected in FIG. 5, with respect to any particularpair of sleds 504A and 504B possessing optical signaling connectivity tothe optical fabric, connectivity scheme 500 may thus provide support forlink-layer connectivity via both Ethernet links and HPC links. Thus,both Ethernet and HPC communications can be supported by a singlehigh-bandwidth, low-latency switch fabric. The embodiments are notlimited to this example.

FIG. 6 illustrates a general overview of a rack architecture 600 thatmay be representative of an architecture of any particular one of theracks depicted in FIGS. 1 to 4 according to some embodiments. Asreflected in FIG. 6, rack architecture 600 may generally feature aplurality of sled spaces into which sleds may be inserted, each of whichmay be robotically-accessible via a rack access region 601. In theparticular non-limiting example depicted in FIG. 6, rack architecture600 features five sled spaces 603-1 to 603-5. Sled spaces 603-1 to 603-5feature respective multi-purpose connector modules (MPCMs) 616-1 to616-5.

Included among the types of sleds to be accommodated by rackarchitecture 600 may be one or more types of sleds that featureexpansion capabilities. FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a sled 704 thatmay be representative of a sled of such a type. As shown in FIG. 7, sled704 may comprise a set of physical resources 705, as well as an MPCM 716designed to couple with a counterpart MPCM when sled 704 is insertedinto a sled space such as any of sled spaces 603-1 to 603-5 of FIG. 6.Sled 704 may also feature an expansion connector 717. Expansionconnector 717 may generally comprise a socket, slot, or other type ofconnection element that is capable of accepting one or more types ofexpansion modules, such as an expansion sled 718. By coupling with acounterpart connector on expansion sled 718, expansion connector 717 mayprovide physical resources 705 with access to supplemental computingresources 705B residing on expansion sled 718. The embodiments are notlimited in this context.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a rack architecture 800 that may berepresentative of a rack architecture that may be implemented in orderto provide support for sleds featuring expansion capabilities, such assled 704 of FIG. 7. In the particular non-limiting example depicted inFIG. 8, rack architecture 800 includes seven sled spaces 803-1 to 803-7,which feature respective MPCMs 816-1 to 816-7. Sled spaces 803-1 to803-7 include respective primary regions 803-1A to 803-7A and respectiveexpansion regions 803-1B to 803-7B. With respect to each such sledspace, when the corresponding MPCM is coupled with a counterpart MPCM ofan inserted sled, the primary region may generally constitute a regionof the sled space that physically accommodates the inserted sled. Theexpansion region may generally constitute a region of the sled spacethat can physically accommodate an expansion module, such as expansionsled 718 of FIG. 7, in the event that the inserted sled is configuredwith such a module.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a rack 902 that may be representativeof a rack implemented according to rack architecture 800 of FIG. 8according to some embodiments. In the particular non-limiting exampledepicted in FIG. 9, rack 902 features seven sled spaces 903-1 to 903-7,which include respective primary regions 903-1A to 903-7A and respectiveexpansion regions 903-1B to 903-7B. In various embodiments, temperaturecontrol in rack 902 may be implemented using an air cooling system. Forexample, as reflected in FIG. 9, rack 902 may feature a plurality offans 919 that are generally arranged to provide air cooling within thevarious sled spaces 903-1 to 903-7. In some embodiments, the height ofthe sled space is greater than the conventional “1U” server height. Insuch embodiments, fans 919 may generally comprise relatively slow, largediameter cooling fans as compared to fans used in conventional rackconfigurations. Running larger diameter cooling fans at lower speeds mayincrease fan lifetime relative to smaller diameter cooling fans runningat higher speeds while still providing the same amount of cooling. Thesleds are physically shallower than conventional rack dimensions.Further, components are arranged on each sled to reduce thermalshadowing (i.e., not arranged serially in the direction of air flow). Asa result, the wider, shallower sleds allow for an increase in deviceperformance because the devices can be operated at a higher thermalenvelope (e.g., 250 W) due to improved cooling (i.e., no thermalshadowing, more space between devices, more room for larger heat sinks,etc.).

MPCMs 916-1 to 916-7 may be configured to provide inserted sleds withaccess to power sourced by respective power modules 920-1 to 920-7, eachof which may draw power from an external power source 921. In variousembodiments, external power source 921 may deliver alternating current(AC) power to rack 902, and power modules 920-1 to 920-7 may beconfigured to convert such AC power to direct current (DC) power to besourced to inserted sleds. In some embodiments, for example, powermodules 920-1 to 920-7 may be configured to convert 277-volt AC powerinto 12-volt DC power for provision to inserted sleds via respectiveMPCMs 916-1 to 916-7. In some examples, MPCMs 916-1 to 916-7 can becoupled to respective power modules 920-1 to 920-7 via electrical powercabling 925-1 to 925-7. The embodiments are not limited to this example.

MPCMs 916-1 to 916-7 may also be arranged to provide inserted sleds withoptical signaling connectivity to a dual-mode optical switchinginfrastructure 914, which may be the same as—or similar to—dual-modeoptical switching infrastructure 514 of FIG. 5. In various embodiments,optical connectors contained in MPCMs 916-1 to 916-7 may be designed tocouple with counterpart optical connectors contained in MPCMs ofinserted sleds to provide such sleds with optical signaling connectivityto dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 914 via respective lengthsof optical cabling 922-1 to 922-7. In some embodiments, each such lengthof optical cabling may extend from its corresponding MPCM to an opticalinterconnect A data 923 that is external to the sled spaces of rack 902.In various embodiments, optical interconnect loom 923 may be arranged topass through a support post or other type of load-bearing element ofrack 902. The embodiments are not limited in this context. Becauseinserted sleds connect to an optical switching infrastructure via MPCMs,the resources typically spent in manually configuring the rack cablingto accommodate a newly inserted sled can be saved.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a sled 1004 that may be representativeof a sled designed for use in conjunction with rack 902 of FIG. 9according to some embodiments. Sled 1004 may feature an MPCM 1016 thatcomprises an optical connector 1016A and a power connector 1016B, andthat is designed to couple with a counterpart MPCM of a sled space inconjunction with insertion of MPCM 1016 into that sled space. CouplingMPCM 1016 with such a counterpart MPCM may cause power connector 1016Bto couple with a power connector comprised in the counterpart MPCM. Thismay generally enable physical resources 1005 of sled 1004 to sourcepower from an external source, via power connector 1016B and powertransmission media 1024 that conductively couples power connector 1016Bto physical resources 1005.

Sled 1004 may also include dual-mode optical network interface circuitry1026. Dual-mode optical network interface circuitry 1026 may generallycomprise circuitry that is capable of communicating over opticalsignaling media according to each of multiple link-layer protocolssupported by dual-mode optical switching infrastructure (e.g., 514 ofFIG. 5, 914 of FIG. 9, or the like). In some embodiments, dual-modeoptical network interface circuitry 1026 may be capable both of Ethernetprotocol communications and of communications according to a second,high-performance protocol. In various embodiments, dual-mode opticalnetwork interface circuitry 1026 may include one or more opticaltransceiver modules 1027, each of which may be capable of transmittingand receiving optical signals over each of one or more optical channels.The embodiments are not limited in this context.

Coupling MPCM 1016 with a counterpart MPCM of a sled space in a givenrack may cause optical connector 1016A to couple with an opticalconnector comprised in the counterpart MPCM. This may generallyestablish optical connectivity between optical cabling of the sled anddual-mode optical network interface circuitry 1026, via each of a set ofoptical channels 1025. Dual-mode optical network interface circuitry1026 may communicate with the physical resources 1005 of sled 1004 viaelectrical signaling media 1028. In addition to the dimensions of thesleds and arrangement of components on the sleds to provide improvedcooling and enable operation at a relatively higher thermal envelope(e.g., 250 W), as described above with reference to FIG. 9, in someembodiments, a sled may include one or more additional features tofacilitate air cooling, such as a heatpipe and/or heat sinks arranged todissipate heat generated by physical resources 1005. It is worthy ofnote that although the example sled 1004 depicted in FIG. 10 does notfeature an expansion connector, any given sled that features the designelements of sled 1004 may also feature an expansion connector accordingto some embodiments. The embodiments are not limited in this context.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a data center 1100 that may generallybe representative of one in/for which one or more techniques describedherein may be implemented according to various embodiments. As reflectedin FIG. 11, a physical infrastructure management framework 1150A may beimplemented to facilitate management of a physical infrastructure 1100Aof data center 1100. In various embodiments, one function of physicalinfrastructure management framework 1150A may be to manage automatedmaintenance functions within data center 1100, such as the use ofrobotic maintenance equipment to service computing equipment withinphysical infrastructure 1100A. In some embodiments, physicalinfrastructure 1100A may feature an advanced telemetry system thatperforms telemetry reporting that is sufficiently robust to supportremote automated management of physical infrastructure 1100A. In variousembodiments, telemetry information provided by such an advancedtelemetry system may support features such as failureprediction/prevention capabilities and capacity planning capabilities.In some embodiments, physical infrastructure management framework 1150Amay also be configured to manage authentication of physicalinfrastructure components using hardware attestation techniques. Forexample, robots may verify the authenticity of components beforeinstallation by analyzing information collected from a radio frequencyidentification (RFID) tag associated with each component to beinstalled. The embodiments are not limited in this context.

As shown in FIG. 11, the physical infrastructure 1100A of data center1100 may comprise an optical fabric 1112, which may include a dual-modeoptical switching infrastructure 1114. Optical fabric 1112 and dual-modeoptical switching infrastructure 1114 may be the same as—or similarto—optical fabric 412 of FIG. 4 and dual-mode optical switchinginfrastructure 514 of FIG. 5, respectively, and may providehigh-bandwidth, low-latency, multi-protocol connectivity among sleds ofdata center 1100. As discussed above, with reference to FIG. 1, invarious embodiments, the availability of such connectivity may make itfeasible to disaggregate and dynamically pool resources such asaccelerators, memory, and storage. In some embodiments, for example, oneor more pooled accelerator sleds 1130 may be included among the physicalinfrastructure 1100A of data center 1100, each of which may comprise apool of accelerator resources—such as co-processors and/or FPGAs, forexample—that is globally accessible to other sleds via optical fabric1112 and dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 1114.

In another example, in various embodiments, one or more pooled storagesleds 1132 may be included among the physical infrastructure 1100A ofdata center 1100, each of which may comprise a pool of storage resourcesthat is available globally accessible to other sleds via optical fabric1112 and dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 1114. In someembodiments, such pooled storage sleds 1132 may comprise pools ofsolid-state storage devices such as solid-state drives (SSDs). Invarious embodiments, one or more high-performance processing sleds 1134may be included among the physical infrastructure 1100A of data center1100. In some embodiments, high-performance processing sleds 1134 maycomprise pools of high-performance processors, as well as coolingfeatures that enhance air cooling to yield a higher thermal envelope ofup to 250 W or more. In various embodiments, any given high-performanceprocessing sled 1134 may feature an expansion connector 1117 that canaccept a far memory expansion sled, such that the far memory that islocally available to that high-performance processing sled 1134 isdisaggregated from the processors and near memory comprised on thatsled. In some embodiments, such a high-performance processing sled 1134may be configured with far memory using an expansion sled that compriseslow-latency SSD storage. The optical infrastructure allows for computeresources on one sled to utilize remote accelerator/FPGA, memory, and/orSSD resources that are disaggregated on a sled located on the same rackor any other rack in the data center. The remote resources can belocated one switch jump away or two-switch jumps away in the spine-leafnetwork architecture described above with reference to FIG. 5. Theembodiments are not limited in this context.

In various embodiments, one or more layers of abstraction may be appliedto the physical resources of physical infrastructure 1100A in order todefine a virtual infrastructure, such as a software-definedinfrastructure 1100B. In some embodiments, virtual computing resources1136 of software-defined infrastructure 1100B may be allocated tosupport the provision of cloud services 1140. In various embodiments,particular sets of virtual computing resources 1136 may be grouped forprovision to cloud services 1140 in the form of SDI services 1138.Examples of cloud services 1140 may include—without limitation—softwareas a service (SaaS) services 1142, platform as a service (PaaS) services1144, and infrastructure as a service (IaaS) services 1146.

In some embodiments, management of software-defined infrastructure 1100Bmay be conducted using a virtual infrastructure management framework1150B. In various embodiments, virtual infrastructure managementframework 1150B may be designed to implement workload fingerprintingtechniques and/or machine-learning techniques in conjunction withmanaging allocation of virtual computing resources 1136 and/or SDIservices 1138 to cloud services 1140. In some embodiments, virtualinfrastructure management framework 1150B may use/consult telemetry datain conjunction with performing such resource allocation. In variousembodiments, an application/service management framework 1150C may beimplemented in order to provide QoS management capabilities for cloudservices 1140. The embodiments are not limited in this context.

FIGS. 12A-12E illustrate perspective views of a rack 1202 that may berepresentative of a rack implemented according to some embodiments. Inthe particular non-limiting example depicted in this figure, rack 1202can include multiple components arranged to form rack 1202. In general,a complete depiction of rack 1202 is given with respect to FIG. 12Awhile depictions of individual components and/or alternative perspectiveviews of rack 1202 are given with respect to FIGS. 12B-12E.

Turning more specifically to FIG. 12A, rack 1202 is depicted featuringsix sled spaces 1203-1 to 1203-6. It is noted, that the number of sledspaces is depicted at a quantity to facilitate understanding and not tobe limiting. Thus, rack 1202 could be implemented with any number ofsled spaces.

Rack 1202 includes a pair of posts 1260A and 1260B. Posts 1260A and1260B are arranged at rear corners of rack 1202 as depicted. Posts 1260Aand 1260B can be envisioned or described as forming corners in a rearplane of the rack 1202. In some examples, the posts 1260A and 1260B arehollow. In some examples, the posts 1260A and 1260B are identical. Rack1202 further includes a number of pairs of sled brackets 1270A and1270B. In general, rack 1202 can also feature a pair of sled bracketsfor each sled space provided by rack 1202. Accordingly, in thisillustrative example, rack 1202 comprises pairs of sled brackets 1270A-1and 1270B-1 to 1270A-6 and 1270B-6, corresponding to sled spaces 1203-1to 1203-6 respectively.

It is important to note, rack 1202 could share a post (e.g., post 1260A,post 1260B, or the like) with one or more adjacent racks (e.g., such asadjacent racks 302 of FIG. 3, or the like). For example, post 1260Acould be shared with another rack adjacent to rack 1202 of a first side;post 1260B could be shared with another rack adjacent to rack 1202 of asecond side; or post 1260A could be shared with another rack adjacent torack 1202 of the first side while post 1260B could be shared withanother rack adjacent to rack 1202 of the second side. Examples are notlimited in this context.

A bracket from each pair of sled brackets can be mechanically coupled torespective ones of the posts 1260A and 1260B. For example, sled brackets1270A-1 to 1270A-6 are coupled to post 1260A while sled brackets 1270B-1to 1270B-6 are coupled to post 1260B (refer to FIGS. 12D and 12E). Sledbrackets can be envisioned or described as forming side planes of rack1202. In some examples, the sled brackets from a pair of sled bracketscan be identical to each other. For example, sled bracket 1270A-1 and1270B-1 can be identical. In general, each pair of sled brackets 1270A-1and 1270B-1 to 1270A-6 and 1270B-6 form a shelf in which sleds (e.g.,refer to FIGS. 13A-13B and FIGS. 15A-15C) can be robotically installed.This is described in greater detail below.

In various embodiments, temperature control in rack 1202 may beimplemented using an air cooling system. For example, rack 1202 mayfeature a plurality of fans 1219 that are generally arranged to provideair cooling within the various sled spaces 1203-1 to 1203-6. In someembodiments, the height of the sled space is greater than theconventional “1U” server height. In such embodiments, fans 1219 maygenerally comprise relatively slow, large diameter cooling fans ascompared to fans used in conventional rack configurations. Runninglarger diameter cooling fans at lower speeds may increase fan lifetimerelative to smaller diameter cooling fans running at higher speeds whilestill providing the same amount of cooling. The sleds are physicallyshallower than conventional rack dimensions. In particular, in somespecific non-limiting examples, sled spaces 1203-1 to 1203-6 can bebetween 10 to 40 inches wide, 6 to 18 inches deep and 2 to 8 incheshigh. In a particular non-limiting example, sled spaces 1203-1 to 1203-6can be 18 inches wide, 10 inches deep and 4 inches high. In aparticularly illustrative example, the sled can be 18 inches wide, 10inches deep, and 8 inches high.

It is noted, that the physical resources on sleds (e.g., refer to FIG.15A and FIG. 18) can be arranged on each sled to reduce thermalshadowing (i.e., not arranged serially in the direction of air flow). Asa result, the wider, shallower sleds allow for an increase in deviceperformance since the devices can be operated at a higher thermalenvelope (e.g., 250 W) due to improved cooling (i.e., no thermalshadowing, more space between devices, more room for larger heat sinks,etc.) enabled by rack architecture 1202.

MPCMs 1216-1 to 1216-6 may be configured to provide inserted sleds withaccess to power sourced by respective power modules 1220-1 to 1220-6,each of which may draw power from an external power source (refer toFIG. 9). In various embodiments, the external power source may deliveralternating current (AC) power to rack 1202, and power modules 1220-1 to1220-6 may be configured to convert such AC power to direct current (DC)power to be sourced to inserted sleds. In some embodiments, for example,power modules 1220-1 to 1220-6 may be configured to convert 277-volt ACpower into 12-volt DC power for provision to inserted sleds viarespective MPCMs 1216-1 to 1216-6. The embodiments are not limited tothis example.

MPCMs 1216-1 to 1216-6 may also be arranged to provide inserted sledswith optical signaling connectivity to a dual-mode optical switchinginfrastructure (e.g., refer to FIG. 9), which may be the same as—orsimilar to—dual-mode optical switching infrastructure 514 of FIG. 5. Invarious embodiments, optical connectors contained in MPCMs 1216-1 to1216-6 may be designed to couple with counterpart optical connectorscontained in MPCMs of inserted sleds to provide such sleds with opticalsignaling connectivity to dual-mode optical switching infrastructure viarespective lengths of optical cabling (e.g., refer to FIGS. 16A-16B). Insome embodiments, each such length of optical cabling may extend fromits corresponding MPCM to an optical interconnect loom (e.g., refer toFIG. 12B) that is external to the sled spaces of rack 1202.

Furthermore, rack 1202 can feature pair(s) of sled retainers 1280coupled to particular pairs of sled brackets 1270A and 1270B,respectively, and arranged to align and/or retain sleds within sledspaces 1203. For example, sled retainers 1280A and 1280B are depictedcoupled to sled brackets 1270A-3 and 1270B-3 to 1270A-5 and 1270B-5,respectively. However, for purposes of clarity, only sled retainers1280A and 1280B coupled to sled bracket pair 1270A-3 and 1270B-3 arespecifically called out in this figure. In some examples, the sledretainers 1280A and 1280B in each pair of sled retainers can beidentical.

Turning more particularly to FIG. 12B, a portion of rack 1202 isillustrated in greater detail. In particular, posts 1260A and 1260B aredepicted without other components of racks (e.g., brackets, fans, etc.)to more clearly illustrate examples representative of a rack implementedaccording to some embodiments. As depicted in this figure, each rackpost (e.g., posts 1260A and 1260B) can feature sled bracket mounts 1261.In general, sled bracket mounts 1261 are arranged and configured tomechanically couple with sled brackets 1270 (refer to FIG. 12D) tosecure sled brackets to posts as depicted and described herein. Inparticular, sled bracket mounts 1261 can be arranged to mechanicallycouple to corresponding rack post mounts (refer to FIG. 12D) on sledbrackets to secure sled brackets to posts 1260A and 1260B. In someexamples, sled bracket mounts 1261 can be cut-outs (e.g., as depicted).In some examples, sled bracket mounts 1261 can be protrusions withfeatures to mechanically couple to corresponding cut-outs in sledbrackets.

Rack posts 1260A and 1260B can further feature a loom 1223 disposed inone or more posts. For example, this figure illustrates loom 1223disposed within posts 1260B. It is noted, that loom 1223 can bepositioned within posts 1260B, for example, within a hollow cavity,within a recess, or the like. This is more fully illustrated withrespect to FIG. 12E. In some examples, loom 1223 can be like, opticalinterconnect loom 923 described with respect to FIG. 9. In variousembodiments, an optical interconnect loom, such as loom 1223, may bearranged to pass through posts, or other types of load-bearing elementsof rack 1202. For example, as depicted, loom 1223 passes through post1260B.

Rack posts 1260A and 1260B can further feature sled space cabling accessports 1265. In general, sled space cabling access ports 1265 can bearranged to provide optical interconnect, conventional copperinterconnect, and/or electrical power cabling to individual sled spaces.1203-1 to 1203-6. For example, port 1265 can provide access for cablingin a sled space to couple an MPCM to interconnect cabling in loom 1223.Turning more particularly to FIG. 12C a portion of rack 1202 isillustrated in greater detail. In particular, posts 1260A and 1260B aredepicted without other components of racks (e.g., brackets, fans, etc.)to more clearly illustrate examples representative of a rack implementedaccording to some embodiments. In particular, this figure depictsoptical interconnect cabling 1222 extending between loom 1223 disposedwithin post 1260B of rack 1202 and MPCMs 1216.

More particularly, this figure illustrates a few of sled spaces 1203 forpurposes of clarity. Specifically, sled spaces 1203-4 to 1203-6 aredepicted. Rack 1202 can feature MPCM brackets 1267 for each sled space.In general, MPCM brackets 1267 can supports individual MPCMs within asled space. For example, MPCM brackets 1267-4 to 1267-6 are depictedsupporting respective ones of MPCMs 1216-4 to 1216-6 within sled spaces1203-4 to 1203-6.

Furthermore, optical cabling 1222 is depicted running between loom 1223within post 1260B and MPCMs 1216, via cable access ports 1265. Ingeneral, each such length of optical cabling 1222 may extend from itscorresponding MPCM to a loom 1223 that is external to the sled spaces ofrack 1202. For example, optical cabling 1222-4 to 1222-6 is depictedrunning between loom 1223 and respective MPCMs 1216-4 to 1216-6, viarespective cable access ports 1265.

FIG. 12D illustrates a portion of rack 1202 in greater detail. Inparticular, a sled bracket 1270 is depicted without other rackcomponents (e.g., posts, brackets, fans, etc.) to more clearlyillustrate examples representative of a rack implemented according tosome embodiments. The depicted sled bracket 1270 of rack 1202 cancorrespond to any of sled brackets 1270 depicted in FIGS. 12A-12C and12E, such as, for example, one of sled brackets 1270A-1 to 1270A-6 orsled brackets 1270B-2 to 1270B-6. As depicted in this illustrativefigure, sled bracket 1270 can include a post mount 1271 and bracketalignment feature 1272.

In general, post mount 1271 is arranged and configured to mechanicallycouple with rack posts (e.g., post 1260A, 1260B, or the like) to securesled bracket 1270 to a posts of rack 1202 as depicted and describedherein. In particular, post mount 1271 can be arranged to mechanicallycouple to a corresponding sled bracket mount 1261 (e.g., refer to FIG.12B) on a post to secure sled bracket 1270 to the post. In someexamples, post mount 1271 can be a protrusion with features tomechanically couple to corresponding cut-outs in posts (e.g., asdepicted). In some examples, post mount 1271 can be cut-outs arranged tomechanically couple to a protrusion of a post. In some examples, sledbracket 1270 can feature more than one post mount 1271.

In general, bracket alignment feature 1272 can be any feature (e.g.,protrusion, detent, cut-out, recess, bulge, or the like) arranged tomechanically couple to a feature of post (e.g., sled bracket mount 1261,or the like) and align sled bracket 1270 into an intended positon onrack 1202.

Sled bracket 1270 can further feature a loom access port 1273. Loomaccess port 1273 can be included in rack 1202 to provide a pathway forcabling (e.g., electrical power cabling, or the like) from loom 1263(e.g., refer to FIGS. 12B-12C) through post 1260 and sled bracket 1270.Sled bracket 1270 can further feature a sled retainer shelf 1275. Inparticular, rack 1202 can include components and/or features (e.g.,refer to FIGS. 13A-13B, FIGS. 15A-15C, and FIG. 17) to align and/orretain sleds in sled spaces or rack 1202. Such sled retainer componentsare described in greater detail below. However, in general, they can bearranged to provide alignment to a sled as a sled is inserted into asled space. A sled retainer component can be mounted to each sledbracket, and in particular to sled retainer shelfs 1275 of each sledbracket 1270.

Sled bracket 1270 can further feature sled retainer mounts 1277. Ingeneral, sled retainer mounts 1277 can be features (e.g., cut-outs,structures, or the like) of sled retainer shelf 1275 that are arrangedto mechanically couple to sled retainers 1280A and 1280B. For example,sled retainers (refer to FIGS. 13A-13B) can feature sled shelf mountsarranged to couple to sled retainer mounts of a sled bracket 1270 tomechanically secure a sled retainer to a sled shelf.

FIG. 12E illustrates a portion of rack 1202 in greater detail. Inparticular, a cut-away overhead view of posts and brackets without othercomponents of racks (e.g., fans, MPCMs, etc.) is depicted to moreclearly illustrate examples representative of a rack implementedaccording to some embodiments. In particular, a lower portion of rack1202 is depicted including portions of posts 1260A and 1260B as well assled brackets 1270A-4 to 1270A-6 and 1270B-4 to 1270B-6 corresponding topairs of sled brackets defining sled spaces 1203-4 to 1203-6. Forexample, sled space 1203-4 is highlighted and specifically called out inthis figure. Additionally, loom 1223 is depicted within post 1260B.

FIG. 13A illustrates a perspective view of an example sled retainer 1380according to some embodiments. In some examples sled retainer 1380 canbe representative of any of sled retainers 1280 depicted in FIG. 12A. Asdepicted, sled retainer 1380 can feature alignment tracks 1381. Ingeneral, alignment tracks 1381 can be arranged to accept portions (e.g.,edge portion, substrate, corresponding alignment strips, or the like) ofa sled to be inserted into a sled space to which sled retainer 1380 isassociated. Additionally, with some examples sled retainer 1380 caninclude additional physical features (not shown), such as, for example,recesses, protrusions, detents, or the like within alignment tracks1381. Such features can be arranged to retain a sled within alignmenttrack 1381 once seated (e.g., by a robot, or the like). For example,alignment tracks 1381 can feature a lip (not shown) formed at theentrance to the alignment track to retain a sled manipulated into thealignment track. Furthermore, in some examples, sled retainer can bearranged to facilitate automated and/or robotic installation andalignment of a sled within a sled space. For example, as depicted, theentrance or frontal portion is wider to ease insertion of a sled intoalignment tracks and then “guide” the sled into a desired positionwithin a sled space.

Sled retainer 1380 can be arranged to couple to a sled bracket. FIG. 13Billustrates the sled retainer coupled to an example sled bracket 1370according to some embodiments. Sled bracket 1370 can be representativeof sled brackets 1270 depicted in FIG. 12A and FIGS. 12D-12E. Asdepicted, sled retainer 1380 is coupled to sled bracket 1370. Inparticular, sled shelf mounts 1383 couple with sled retainer mounts1377. Said differently, sled shelf mounts 1383 insert into sled retainermounts 1377 to mechanically couple and secure sled retainer 1380 to sledbracket 1370.

FIG. 14 illustrates an example power module coupled to a sled bracketaccording to some embodiments. In general, a power module can beprovided for each sled space (refer to FIGS. 9 and 12A). Power module1420 can be representative of any one of these power modules (e.g.,power module 920-1 to 920-7, power module 1220-1 to 1220-6, or thelike). As detailed above, power module 1420 can be configured to convertAC power (e.g., from an external power source) to direct current (DC)power to be sourced to sleds inserted into a sled space to which thepower module 1420 is associated. In some embodiments, power module 1420may be configured to convert 277-volt AC power into 12-volt DC power forprovision to inserted sleds via a respective MPCM.

In some examples, power module 1420 can be coupled to a sled bracket1470 of a rack, for example, as depicted in this figure. In someembodiments, power module 1420 can be arranged to be disposed within aspace formed by a sled retainer shelf 1475 and sled retainer shelfsupport 1479 of sled bracket 1470.

FIGS. 15A-15C illustrate perspective views of a sled 1504 that may berepresentative of a sled implemented according to some embodimentsinserted into a particular sled space of a rack. In particular, thesefigures depict a sled coupled to sled retainers supported by sledbrackets of a rack to align sled 1504 into a particular sled space. Sled1504 and sled space 1503 can be implemented in a data center detailedherein. For example, sled 1504 and sled space 1503 can correspond to asled inserted into a sled space 903 of rack 902. Examples are notlimited in these contexts.

As depicted in this illustrative figure, sled 1504 includes rackmounting features 1585, which are arranged to couple to alignment tracks1581 of sled retainers 1580A and 1580B, which themselves are coupled tosled brackets 1570A and 1570B, respectively. Sled brackets 1570A and1570B can in turn be coupled to a rack, and specifically, rack posts(refer to FIGS. 12A-12D), thus, forming sled space 1504 within a rack.

In some examples, lateral ends, or sides, of a sled can include rackmounting features. For example, FIGS. 15B and 15C depict rack mountingfeatures 1585 formed from respective sides of sled 1504. These rackmounting features 1585 can be arranged to couple to correspondingalignment tracks 1581 in sled retainers 1580A and 1580B, respectively.

Additionally, with some examples rack mounting features 1585 can includevarious detainment features (not shown), such as, for example, recesses,protrusions, detents, or the like. Such detainment features can bearranged to retain sled 1504 within alignment tracks 1581 once seated(e.g., by a robot, or the like). For example, rack mounting features1585 can include a recess (not shown) formed along a portion of rackmounting feature 1585 and configured to couple to a protrusion ofalignment track 1581.

FIGS. 16A-16B illustrate perspective views of an example MPCM arrangedaccording to some embodiments. In particular, FIG. 16A depicts anillustrative rack side MPCM while FIG. 16B depicts an illustrative sledside MPCM. It is noted, that the arrangement of the rack side MPCM andsled side MPCM is given for illustration purposes only and not to belimiting. For example, an implementation could be envisioned where thefeatures of rack side MPCM are implemented on the sled side MPCM, andvice versa.

Turning more particularly to FIG. 16A, a portion of a sled space areaincluding rack side MPCM 1616R mounted to an MPCM bracket 1667 isdepicted. In some examples, the sled space area depicted can correspondto any of the sled spaces detailed herein, such as, for example, sledspaces 903-1 to 903-7 of FIG. 9. The rack side MPCM 1616R can include anMPCM body 1691R as well as connector components arranged to couple tocorresponding connector components of a sled side MPCM (see FIG. 16B).

In particular, the MPCM 1616R features MPCM receptacle 1693R, opticalconnector 1695R and power connector 1697R. In some examples, the rackside MPCM connector 1616R can be envisioned as a generally female shapedconnector. However, examples are not limited in this context and therack side MPCM 1616R could be implemented as a male connector, or othertype connector. The optical connector 1695R is coupled to opticalcabling 1622 to couple MPCM 1616R to an optical fabric (e.g., viaoptical cabling in a loom of rack post, or the like). Power connector1697R is coupled to electrical power cabling 1625 to couple MPCM 1616Rto a power source (e.g., power module of the corresponding sled space,or the like).

Turning more particularly to FIG. 16B, a portion of a sled includingsled side MPCM 1616S mounted to a substrate of a sled is depicted. Insome examples, the portion of the sled can correspond to any sleddetailed herein. The sled side MPCM 1616S can include an MPCM body 1691Sas well as connector components arranged to couple to correspondingconnector components of a rack side MPCM (see FIG. 16A).

In particular, the MPCM 1616S features MPCM receptacle 1693S, opticalconnector 1695S and power connector 1697S. In some examples, the sledside MPCM connector can be envisioned as a generally male shapedconnector. However, examples are not limited in this context and thesled side MPCM 1616S could be implemented as a female connector, orother type connector.

FIG. 17 illustrates a perspective view of a rack 1702 that may berepresentative of a rack implemented according to some embodiments. Ingeneral, the rack 1702 may be similar to the rack 1202 of FIGS. 12A-12E.In the illustrative example depicted in FIG. 17, the rack 1702 featuresa sled space 1703 formed from a pair of sled brackets 1770A and 1770B.Sled retainers 1780A and 1780B are coupled to respective sled brackets1770A and 1770B. Rack 1702 additionally, features an MPCM 1716 coupledto an MPCM bracket 1767 to position MPCM 1716 within sled space 1703.MPCM 1716 can be arranged to couple to a corresponding MPCM of a sledinserted into sled space 1703. Rack 1702 can feature fans 1719 arrangedto cool components of a sled inserted into sled space 1703. Furthermore,rack 1702 can feature power modules 1720 corresponding to each sledspace of the rack 1702. Power modules 1720 can be arranged to providepower to component(s) of a sled inserted into a sled space correspondingto the power module 1720.

FIG. 18 illustrates a perspective view of a rack 1802 that may berepresentative of a rack implemented according to some embodiments thatfeature an expansion region. For example, the rack 1802 may be similarto the rack 902 of FIG. 9. Furthermore, rack 1802 can feature similarcomponents to racks 1202 and 1702 described with reference to FIGS.12A-12E and FIG. 17. In the illustrative example depicted in FIG. 18,the rack 1802 features a number of sled spaces (not called out forclarity purposes, however, refer to FIG. 9 for sled space arrangement)formed from a pair of sled brackets 1870A and 1870B. Sled brackets 1870Aand 1870B are coupled to rack posts 1860A and 1860B, respectively.Furthermore, rack 1802 can feature an expansion post 1860C disposedbetween rack posts 1860A and 1860B to divide a sled space into a primaryregion 1803A and an expansion region 1803B.

Rack 1802 additionally features MPCMs 1816 arranged to couple to acorresponding MPCM of a sled inserted into primary sled space 1803A.Rack 1802 further features expansion brackets 1870C coupled to expansionpost 1860C. Expansion brackets can be arranged to couple to sleds and/orexpansion sleds inserted into corresponding primary and expansion sledspaces 1803A and 1803B.

Rack 1802 can feature fans 1819 arranged to cool components of a sledinserted into primary and expansion sled spaces 1803A and 1803B.Furthermore, rack 1802 can feature power modules 1820 corresponding toeach sled space of the rack 1802. Power modules 1820 can be arranged toprovide power to component of a sled inserted into a sled spacecorresponding to the power module 1820.

Furthermore, this illustrative figure depicts some example primary andexpansion sleds inserted into various sled spaces of rack 1802. Inparticular, primary sleds 1804 are depicted inserted into a number ofprimary sled spaces 1803A while expansion sleds 1818 are depictedinserted into a number of expansion sled spaces 1803B.

FIG. 19 illustrates an example data center 1900 in which a robot 1990can operate to install, replace, and/or maintain the data center. Inparticular, data center 1900 includes rows of racks 1902, which eachfeature a number of sleds 1904 installed into sled spaces of the racks1902. It is noted, that the racks 1902 and sleds 1904 depicted hereincan be implemented according to some embodiments, such as, for example,any of the racks and/or sleds detailed and depicted herein. Inparticular, the racks 1902 and sled 1904 can be arranged and configuredto mechanically couple as detailed herein. For example, racks 1902 canfeature brackets and retainers (refer to as least FIGS. 12A-12E) whilesleds 1904 can include mounting features (refer to as least FIGS.15A-15C) to facilitate automated, or autonomous, installation and/orremoval of sleds 1904 from racks 1902 by robot 1990.

Furthermore, in some examples, individual components of a sled can bereplaceable and/or maintainable by robot 1990. For example, some sleds1904 could comprise physical storage resources (e.g., SSDs, or the like)and robot 1990 can be arranged to install and remove SSDs from anynumber of such sleds 1904. Examples are not limited in this context.

Robot 1990 can be configured (e.g., dimensioned, sized, or the like) totravel along access pathway 1911 to access racks 1902, and particularlysleds 1904, within data center 1900. Robot 1990 can featuremulti-directional wheels 1995 arranged to facilitate movement and/ortravel of the robot in a number of directions. It is noted, that therobot 1990 is depicted including 4 multi-directional wheels 1995.However, examples can be envisioned where the robot 1990 is implementedwith more or less than 4 multi-directional wheels. For example, robotcould be implemented with 6 multi-directional wheels, or 3multi-directional wheels. Furthermore, as used herein, multi-directionalwheels 1995 can be configured to rotate along more than one axis. Saiddifferently, multi-directional wheels 1995 are configured to propel therobot over more than one axis. For example, as depicted in this figure,the multi-directional wheels 1995 are configured to propel the robotalong a first axis 1995A and a second axis 1995B. In this illustration,the first and the second axis are orthogonal to each other. Furthermore,although not shown, the multi-directional wheels 1995 can featureactuators, motors, pumps, screws, or the like, which are arranged tomove the components of multi-directional wheels 1995 and propel therobot 1990 about the axes 1995A and/or 1995B. Examples are not limitedin this context.

In some examples, the robot 1990 can be controlled remotely by anoperator, for example, a human operator. In some examples, the robot1990 can be programmed to operate autonomously and/or partiallyautonomously. This is described in greater detail below, for example,with respect to FIGS. 20-22.

Robot 1990 can feature a robotic arm 1991 and a component storage rack1993. In general, component storage rack 1993 can be arranged to houseand/or store components for data center 1990, such as, for example,sleds 1904. In some examples, component storage rack 1993 can bearranged to house components of sleds 1904 (e.g., SSDs, or the like).Robotic arm 1991 can include features to enable moving sleds 1904 fromcomponent storage rack 1993 to individual racks 1902 and vice versa. Forexample, robotic arm 1991 can feature a picking fork 1991A arranged tomanipulate a sled. The picking fork 1991A can be configured to telescopeand/or articulate about an axis formed by slide 1991B. In anillustrative example, picking fork can be inserted under a sled 1904;raised to support a sled and remove the sled from component storage rack1993; and insert the sled into a sled space of a rack 1902 in datacenter 1990. Furthermore, although not shown, robotic arm 1991 caninclude actuators, motors, pumps, screws, or the like, which arearranged to move the robotic arm 1991 about the axis (or axes) asdescribed herein. For example, the robotic arm 1991 can be hydraulicallyactuated and could be configured with a hydraulic pump, reservoir, andpiston, which are arranged to move the picking fork 1991A. As anotherexample, the robotic arm 1991 can be mechanically actuated and could beconfigured with a screw, electric motor, and nut apparatus, which arearranged to move the picking fork 1991A.

Robot 1990 can feature a power source and control unit 1997. FIG. 20illustrates a block diagram of an example robot 2000. In some examples,the robot 2000 can be implemented as the robot 1990 of FIG. 19. In theillustrative example depicted in FIG. 20, robot 2000 can feature powersource/control unit 2097 including a controller 2040, platformcomponents 2050, communications interface 2060 and antenna 2061, andpower source 2070. Furthermore, robot 2000 can feature multi-directionalwheels 2095 (e.g., like multi-directional wheels 1995), a robotic arm2019 (e.g., like robotic arm 1991) and a component storage rack 2093(e.g., like component storage rack 1993).

In general, power source 2070 can be any power source arranged toprovide power to the system(s) and/or sub-system(s) of robot 2000. Insome examples, the power source 2070 can be rechargeable. For example,the power source could be a lithium based rechargeable battery. In otherexamples, the power source can be a fuel cell, for example, the powersource could be a propane or natural gas cylinder. Examples are notlimited in this context.

Controller 2040 can be a processor component or a combination ofprocessor component(s) and other circuitry, such as, for example,programmable logic components, or the like. In some examples, controller2040 can comprise instructions to be executed by a processing componentto cause the robot to operate as described. Controller 2040 can featurea number of components arranged to control operation of robot 2000, forexample, to facilitate autonomous configuration, maintenance,installation, and/or removal of sleds and component from sleds within adata center.

The platform components 2050 can include any of a variety of componentsto facilitate interactions between the user and the robot, between therobot and an environment (e.g., a data center, racks, sleds, physicalresources, or the like). For example, the platform components 2050 caninclude a camera, a scanner, a radar detector, a speaker, a display,input button(s), joystick(s), a keyboard, sensor(s).

In general, communications interface 2060 and antenna 2061 can be any ofa variety of wireless interfaces to communicatively couple the robot toentities within a data center. For example, the communications interface2060 and antenna 2061 could be arranged to communicatively couple to aphysical infrastructure management framework. In particular, thecommunications interface 2060 and antenna 2061 could be arranged tocommunicatively couple to a pod manager of a physical infrastructuremanagement framework, such as, framework 1150A of FIG. 11.

As another example, the communications interface 2060 and antenna 2061could be arranged to communicatively couple to a rack, such as, forexample, a rack having various beacons or sensors coupled to the rack.As a specific example, the communications interface 2060 and antenna2061 could be arranged to communicatively couple to an RFID beaconand/or sensor coupled to a rack in the data center, a sled in the datacenter, or the like.

In some examples, communications interface 2060 and antenna 2061 can bearranged to couple via any of a variety of communications standards andtechnologies, such as, wireless standards (e.g., IEEE 802.11 standards),cellular standards (e.g., 1G, 3G, 4G, LTE, LTEA, 5G, or the like),peer-to-peer standards (e.g., Bluetooth, ZigBee, NFC, RFID, or thelike).

In the illustrative example depicted in this figure, controller 2040features a command component 2042, an ID/location component 2044, amovement control component 2046 and an arm control component 2048. Ingeneral, command component 2042 can be configured to determine anoperation for robot 2042. For example, command component 2042 canreceive an information element to include an indication of a commandfrom a pod manager of a data center in which the robot 2000 isoperating. Example commands could include, install a particular type ofsled in a specified sled space, remove a particular sled from aspecified sled space, replace a particular component from a specifiedsled, or the like. In some examples, the command components 2042 canreceive information elements to include indications of various telemetryand/or operational metrics, statistics, data points, or the like relatedto the operation of physical resources within the data center. Commandcomponent 2042 can determine an operation for robot 2000, autonomously,for example, based on the received telemetry data.

ID/location component 2044 can be configured to determine a geo-locationof the robot 2000 within a data center and also identify particularracks and sled spaces within the data center. For example, theID/location component 2044 could couple to a global positioning unitsensor provided in platform components 2050 and determine a location ofthe robot within a data center. As another example, ID/locationcomponent 2044 could couple to communications interface 2060 anddetermine a location of the robot within a data center based, forexample, on wireless network signal triangulating techniques. In anotherexample, ID/location component 2044 can maintain, for example, incomputer-readable memory, a map of a data center and can update alocation of the robot 2000 based on the map as the robot travelsthroughout the data center. In some examples, ID/location component 2044can couple to a scanner (e.g., bar code, or the like) and receivesignals indicative of barcodes scanned by the scanner. In such anexample, barcodes can be implemented on racks, posts, brackets, and/orsleds of the data center and such signals can be used by the ID/locationcomponent 2044 to determine a location of the robot within the datacenter and/or identify particular racks, sled spaces, and/or sleds ofthe data center.

The movement control component 2046 can be configured to send controlssignal to the multi-directional wheels 2095 to initiate movement of therobot within a data center. More specifically, the movement controlcomponent 2046 can send control signals to motors and/or actuatorscoupled to the multi-directional wheels 2095. In some examples, themovement control component 2046 can be coupled to the command component2042 and can determine movements for the robot based on operationsdetermined (or received) by the command components 2042.

The arm control component 2048 be configured to send control signals tothe robot arm 2091 to initiate movement of the robot arm. Morespecifically, the arm control component 2048 can send control signals tomotors and/or actuators coupled to the robot arm 2091. In some examples,the arm control component 2048 can be coupled to the command component2042 and can determine movements for the robot arm 2091 based onoperations determined (or received) by the command components 2042.

In some examples, the movement control component 2046 and arm controlcomponent 2048 can be coupled to the communications interface 2060 andradio 2061 and can receive indications of movements to make from a humanoperator. Said differently, in some examples, the robot 2000 can featureboth a manual and an autonomous mode. In such a manual mode, a humanoperator can remotely control the robot while in an autonomous mode, therobot can be controlled, for example, by a pod manager, by apreconfigured maintenance routine, by logic implemented in controller2040, or the like.

FIG. 21 illustrates an example of a logic flow. This figure depictslogic flow 2100. Logic flow 2100 may be representative of some or all ofthe operations executed by one or more logic, features, or devicesdescribed herein, such as, for example, framework 1150A, robot 1990,robot 2000, or the like. More particularly, logic flow 2100 may beimplemented by an automated system (e.g., a robot) to manipulatephysical resources in a data center as detailed herein. For example,logic flow 2100 can be implemented to manipulated a sled (e.g., install,remove, perform a maintenance operation on, or the like) from a rack ina data center. Although logic flow 2100 can be implemented on any rackaccording to some embodiments, the rack 1802 depicted in FIG. 1802 isused as a reference to describe logic flow 2100. However, this is donefor convenience and clarity of presentation only and not to be limiting.

As depicted in the illustrative example of FIG. 21, logic flow 2100 canbegin at block 2110. At block 2110 “receive a command to include anindication to physically manipulate a one of a plurality of physicalresources in a data center” a command can be received, the command toinclude an indication to physically manipulate a one of a plurality ofphysical resources in a data center. For example, the command component2042 of robot 2000 can receive a command to include an indication tophysically manipulate one of the physical resources of sleds 1804 ofrack 1802. For example, command component 2042 can receive a command toinclude an indication to remove a one of the sleds 1804 and replace thesled with a similar type sled, a different type sled, perform amaintenance operation of the sled and replace the sled, or the like.

Continuing to block 2120 “send a control signal to a movement controllerto cause an autonomous apparatus to move proximate to the one of theplurality of physical resources” a control signal to cause an autonomousapparatus (e.g., robot, or the like) to move proximate to the physicalresource to be physically manipulated can be sent to a movementcontroller. For example, command component 2042 can send a controlsignal to movement control component 2046 to cause movement controlcomponent 2046 to actuate multi-directional wheels to cause robot 2000to move proximate to a physical resource in a data center. For example,movement control component 2046 can actuate multi-directional wheels2095 to cause robot 2000 to traverse pathways in a data center (e.g.,access pathways 311 of FIG. 3, or the like) to move proximate to aphysical resource in the data center (e.g. a rack, or the like).

Continuing to block 2130 “send a control signal to a mechanicalmanipulation device to cause the mechanical manipulation device tophysically manipulate the one of the plurality of physical resources” acontrol signal to cause a mechanical manipulation device to physicallymanipulate a physical resource of a data center. For example, commandcomponent 2042 can send a control signal to arm control component 2048to cause arm control component 2048 to actuate robotic arm 2091 to causerobotic arm 2091 to physically manipulate a physical resource of a datacenter. For example, arm control component 2048 can cause robotic arm2091 to remove a one of the sleds 1804 and replace the sled with asimilar type sled, a different type sled, perform a maintenanceoperation of the sled and replace the sled, or the like. As anotherexample, arm control component 2048 can cause robotic arm 2091 to removea physical resource from a sled (e.g., SSD drive, or the like) withoutremoving the sled from a rack.

FIG. 22 illustrates an example of a logic flow. This figure depictslogic flow 2200. Logic flow 2200 may be representative of some or all ofthe operations executed by one or more logic, features, or devicesdescribed herein, such as, for example, framework 1150A, robot 1900,robot 2000, or the like. More particularly, logic flow 2200 may beimplemented by an automated system (e.g., a robot) to manipulatephysical resources in a data center as detailed herein. For example,logic flow 2200 can be implemented to determine physical resources in adata center to physically manipulate in an autonomous manner.

As depicted in the illustrative example of FIG. 22, logic flow 2200 canbegin at block 2210. At block 2210 “receive an information element toinclude indications of telemetry metrics for a plurality of physicalresources in a data center” an information element to includeindications of telemetry metrics for a plurality of physical resourcesof a data center can be received. For example, the command component2042 of robot 2000 can receive an information element (e.g., from a podmanager, from racks of a data center, from sleds of a data center, orthe like) to include indications of telemetry metrics for physicalresources of a data center. For example, command component 2042 canreceive indications of telemetry metrics for physical resources of adata center.

Continuing to block 2220 “determine a maintenance operation to includephysical manipulating a one of the plurality of physical resources basedon the telemetry metrics” a maintenance operation to include physicallymanipulating a one of the plurality of physical resources of the datacenter. For example, command component 2042 can determine an operation(e.g., sled removal, sled replacement, sled maintenance, or the like)including physically manipulating a physical resource of a data center.As another example, framework 1150A can determine an operation (e.g.,sled removal, sled replacement, sled maintenance, or the like) includingphysically manipulating a physical resource of a data center.

Continuing to block 2230 “initiate a command to include an indicationfor an autonomous apparatus to perform the maintenance operation” acommand can be initiated including an indication for an autonomousapparatus (e.g., robot 1990, robot 2000, or the like) to perform themaintenance operation. For example, framework 1150A can send a commandto robot 2000 to include an indication for robot 2000 to physicalmanipulate a physical resource of a data center. As another example, cancommand component 2042 can initiate the maintenance operationautonomously.

FIG. 23 illustrates an example of a storage medium 2300. Storage medium2300 may comprise an article of manufacture. In some examples, storagemedium 2300 may include any non-transitory computer readable medium ormachine readable medium, such as an optical, magnetic or semiconductorstorage. Storage medium 2300 may store various types of computerexecutable instructions, such as instructions to implement logic flow2100, to implement logic flow 2200, or to implement a logic flowaccording to some embodiments. Examples of a computer readable ormachine readable storage medium may include any tangible media capableof storing electronic data, including volatile memory or non-volatilememory, removable or non-removable memory, erasable or non-erasablememory, writeable or re-writeable memory, and so forth. Examples ofcomputer executable instructions may include any suitable type of code,such as source code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code,static code, dynamic code, object-oriented code, visual code, and thelike. The examples are not limited in this context.

FIG. 24 illustrates an example computing platform 3000. In someexamples, as shown in this figure, computing platform 3000 may include aprocessing component 3040, other platform components or a communicationsinterface 3060. According to some examples, computing platform 3000 maybe implemented in a computing device such as a server in a system suchas a data center or server farm that supports a manager or controllerfor managing configurable computing resources as mentioned above.

According to some examples, processing component 3040 may includehardware or logic for apparatus described herein, such as, for controlunit 1997, control unit 2097, or storage medium 2300. Processingcomponent 3040 may include various hardware elements, software elements,or a combination of both. Examples of hardware elements may includedevices, logic devices, components, processors, microprocessors,circuits, processor circuits, circuit elements (e.g., transistors,resistors, capacitors, inductors, and so forth), integrated circuits,application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logicdevices (PLD), digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gatearray (FPGA), memory units, logic gates, registers, semiconductordevice, chips, microchips, chip sets, and so forth. Examples of softwareelements may include software components, programs, applications,computer programs, application programs, device drivers, systemprograms, software development programs, machine programs, operatingsystem software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines,subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces,application program interfaces (API), instruction sets, computing code,computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values,symbols, or any combination thereof. Determining whether an example isimplemented using hardware elements and/or software elements may vary inaccordance with any number of factors, such as desired computationalrate, power levels, heat tolerances, processing cycle budget, input datarates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds and otherdesign or performance constraints, as desired for a given example.

In some examples, other platform components 3050 may include commoncomputing elements, such as one or more processors, multi-coreprocessors, co-processors, memory units, chipsets, controllers,peripherals, interfaces, oscillators, timing devices, video cards, audiocards, multimedia input/output (I/O) components (e.g., digitaldisplays), power supplies, and so forth. Examples of memory units mayinclude without limitation various types of computer readable andmachine readable storage media in the form of one or more higher speedmemory units, such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory(RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), Double-Data-Rate DRAM (DDRAM), synchronousDRAM (SDRAM), static RAM (SRAM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasableprogrammable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM(EEPROM), flash memory, polymer memory such as ferroelectric polymermemory, ovonic memory, phase change or ferroelectric memory,silicon-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon (SONOS) memory, magnetic or opticalcards, an array of devices such as Redundant Array of Independent Disks(RAID) drives, solid state memory devices (e.g., USB memory), solidstate drives (SSD) and any other type of storage media suitable forstoring information.

In some examples, communications interface 3060 may include logic and/orfeatures to support a communication interface. For these examples,communications interface 3060 may include one or more communicationinterfaces that operate according to various communication protocols orstandards to communicate over direct or network communication links.Direct communications may occur via use of communication protocols orstandards described in one or more industry standards (includingprogenies and variants) such as those associated with the PCI Expressspecification. Network communications may occur via use of communicationprotocols or standards such those described in one or more Ethernetstandards promulgated by the Institute of Electrical and ElectronicsEngineers (IEEE). For example, one such Ethernet standard may includeIEEE 802.3-2012, Carrier sense Multiple access with Collision Detection(CSMA/CD) Access Method and Physical Layer Specifications, Published inDecember 2012 (hereinafter “IEEE 802.3”). Network communication may alsooccur according to one or more OpenFlow specifications such as theOpenFlow Hardware Abstraction API Specification. Network communicationsmay also occur according to Infiniband Architecture Specification,Volume 1, Release 1.3, published in March 2015 (“the InfinibandArchitecture specification”).

Computing platform 3000 may be part of a computing device that may be,for example, a server, a server array or server farm, a web server, anetwork server, an Internet server, a work station, a mini-computer, amain frame computer, a supercomputer, a network appliance, a webappliance, a distributed computing system, multiprocessor systems,processor-based systems, or combination thereof. Accordingly, functionsand/or specific configurations of computing platform 3000 describedherein, may be included or omitted in various embodiments of computingplatform 3000, as suitably desired.

The components and features of computing platform 3000 may beimplemented using any combination of discrete circuitry, ASICs, logicgates and/or single chip architectures. Further, the features ofcomputing platform 3000 may be implemented using microcontrollers,programmable logic arrays and/or microprocessors or any combination ofthe foregoing where suitably appropriate. It is noted that hardware,firmware and/or software elements may be collectively or individuallyreferred to herein as “logic” or “circuit.”

It should be appreciated that the exemplary computing platform 3000shown in the block diagram of this figure may represent one functionallydescriptive example of many potential implementations. Accordingly,division, omission or inclusion of block functions depicted in theaccompanying figures does not infer that the hardware components,circuits, software and/or elements for implementing these functionswould necessarily be divided, omitted, or included in embodiments.

One or more aspects of at least one example may be implemented byrepresentative instructions stored on at least one machine-readablemedium which represents various logic within the processor, which whenread by a machine, computing device or system causes the machine,computing device or system to fabricate logic to perform the techniquesdescribed herein. Such representations, known as “IP cores” may bestored on a tangible, machine readable medium and supplied to variouscustomers or manufacturing facilities to load into the fabricationmachines that actually make the logic or processor.

Various examples may be implemented using hardware elements, softwareelements, or a combination of both. In some examples, hardware elementsmay include devices, components, processors, microprocessors, circuits,circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors,and so forth), integrated circuits, application specific integratedcircuits (ASIC), programmable logic devices (PLD), digital signalprocessors (DSP), field programmable gate array (FPGA), memory units,logic gates, registers, semiconductor device, chips, microchips, chipsets, and so forth. In some examples, software elements may includesoftware components, programs, applications, computer programs,application programs, system programs, machine programs, operatingsystem software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines,subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces,application program interfaces (API), instruction sets, computing code,computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values,symbols, or any combination thereof. Determining whether an example isimplemented using hardware elements and/or software elements may vary inaccordance with any number of factors, such as desired computationalrate, power levels, heat tolerances, processing cycle budget, input datarates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds and otherdesign or performance constraints, as desired for a givenimplementation.

Some examples may include an article of manufacture or at least onecomputer-readable medium. A computer-readable medium may include anon-transitory storage medium to store logic. In some examples, thenon-transitory storage medium may include one or more types ofcomputer-readable storage media capable of storing electronic data,including volatile memory or non-volatile memory, removable ornon-removable memory, erasable or non-erasable memory, writeable orre-writeable memory, and so forth. In some examples, the logic mayinclude various software elements, such as software components,programs, applications, computer programs, application programs, systemprograms, machine programs, operating system software, middleware,firmware, software modules, routines, subroutines, functions, methods,procedures, software interfaces, API, instruction sets, computing code,computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values,symbols, or any combination thereof.

According to some examples, a computer-readable medium may include anon-transitory storage medium to store or maintain instructions thatwhen executed by a machine, computing device or system, cause themachine, computing device or system to perform methods and/or operationsin accordance with the described examples. The instructions may includeany suitable type of code, such as source code, compiled code,interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code, and thelike. The instructions may be implemented according to a predefinedcomputer language, manner or syntax, for instructing a machine,computing device or system to perform a certain function. Theinstructions may be implemented using any suitable high-level,low-level, object-oriented, visual, compiled and/or interpretedprogramming language.

Some examples may be described using the expression “in one example” or“an example” along with their derivatives. These terms mean that aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connectionwith the example is included in at least one example. The appearances ofthe phrase “in one example” in various places in the specification arenot necessarily all referring to the same example.

Some examples may be described using the expression “coupled” and“connected” along with their derivatives. These terms are notnecessarily intended as synonyms for each other. For example,descriptions using the terms “connected” and/or “coupled” may indicatethat two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contactwith each other. The term “coupled,” however, may also mean that two ormore elements are not in direct contact with each other, but yet stillco-operate or interact with each other.

It is emphasized that the Abstract of the Disclosure is provided tocomply with 37 C.F.R. Section 1.72(b), requiring an abstract that willallow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technicaldisclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not beused to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Inaddition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen thatvarious features are grouped together in a single example for thepurpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is notto be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed examplesrequire more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather,as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in lessthan all features of a single disclosed example. Thus the followingclaims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with eachclaim standing on its own as a separate example. In the appended claims,the terms “including” and “in which” are used as the plain-Englishequivalents of the respective terms “comprising” and “wherein,”respectively. Moreover, the terms “first,” “second,” “third,” and soforth, are used merely as labels, and are not intended to imposenumerical requirements on their objects.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed asexample forms of implementing the claims.

Example 1

A data center rack, comprising: a first post and a second post; and aplurality of pairs of sled brackets, a first sled bracket from each ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the first post and asecond sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketscoupled to the second post, each of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets to receive a sled.

Example 2

The data center rack of example 1, the sled to house at least onephysical resource.

Example 3

The data center rack of example 1, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets to define a sled space to receive a sled.

Example 4

The data center rack of example 3, comprising a plurality of pairs ofsled retainers, a first sled retainer from each of the plurality ofpairs of sled retainers coupled to the first sled bracket of arespective one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets and a secondsled retainer from each of the plurality of pairs of sled retainerscoupled to the second sled bracket of the respective one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers arranged to couple to a sled inserted into the sled spacedefined by a one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets to which thepair of sled retainers is coupled.

Example 5

The data center rack of example 4, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers arranged to couple to a sled autonomously inserted intothe sled space defined by the one of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets to which the pair of sled retainers is coupled.

Example 6

The data center rack of example 4, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers integrated into a respective one of the plurality ofpairs of sled brackets.

Example 7

The data center rack of example 4, wherein the sled is insertable intothe sled space by a robot.

Example 8

The data center rack of example 3, comprising a plurality ofmulti-purpose connector modules (MPCMs), each of the plurality of MPCMsdisposed in a respective one of the plurality of sled spaces.

Example 9

The data center rack of example 8, comprising a plurality of MPCMbrackets coupled to the first and the second posts, the plurality ofMPCM brackets coupled to respective ones of the MPCMs to fix theplurality of MPCMs in an orientation in the sled space.

Example 10

The data center rack of example 8, comprising: an interconnect loomdisposed within at least one of the first or second posts; and aplurality of optical interconnect cables, each of the plurality ofoptical interconnect cables coupled to a respective MPCM of theplurality of MPCMs and routed to the interconnect loom.

Example 11

The data center rack of example 10, wherein the plurality of opticalinterconnect cables are at least partially disposed within theinterconnect loom.

Example 12

The data center rack of example 11, each of the plurality ofinterconnect cables routed to the interconnect loom via a plurality ofsled space cabling access ports defined in the at least one of the firstor second posts.

Example 13

The data center rack of example 11, comprising a plurality of powermodules, each of the plurality of power modules configured to supplypower to a sled in a respective sled space.

Example 14

The data center rack of example 13, each of the plurality of powermodules coupled to a respective first one of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets.

Example 15

The data center rack of example 14, comprising a plurality of electricalpower cables, each of the plurality of electrical power cables coupledto a respective MPCM of the plurality of MPCMs and a respective powermodule.

Example 16

The data center rack of example 15, each of the plurality of powermodules configured to source alternating current (AC) power and providedirect current (DC) power.

Example 17

The data center rack of example 15, each of the plurality of MPCMscomprising a receptacle arranged to couple to a sled side MPCM.

Example 18

The data center rack of example 17, each of the plurality of MPCMscomprising: an optical connector arranged to couple to an opticalconnector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to anoptical fabric; and a power connector arranged to couple to a powerconnector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to a one ofthe plurality of power modules.

Example 19

The data center rack of any one of examples 1 to 18, comprising: anexpansion post disposed between the first and the second post; and aplurality of expansion sled brackets coupled to the expansion post, eachof the plurality of expansion sled brackets corresponding to a one ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality ofexpansion sled brackets and corresponding one of the plurality of pairsof sled brackets defining an expansion sled space to receive anexpansion sled housing at least one physical resource.

Example 20

The data center rack of any one of examples 3 to 18, comprising a sledinserted into a one of the plurality of sled spaces.

Example 21

The data center rack of example 20, the sled to house at least onephysical resource.

Example 22

The data center rack of any one of examples 9 to 18, each of theplurality of MPCMs arranged to couple a sled inserted into a sled spaceto an optical fabric of a data center.

Example 23

The data center rack of example 5, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers comprising an alignment track, the alignment trackarranged to mechanically couple to the rack mounting feature of the sledto facilitate autonomously inserting the sled into the sled spacedefined by the one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets to whichthe pair of sled retainers is coupled.

Example 24

The data center rack of example 23, the alignment tracks arranged tomechanically decouple to the rack mounting feature of the sled tofacilitate autonomously removing the sled from the sled space defined bythe one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets to which the pair ofsled retainers is coupled.

Example 25

The data center rack of any one of examples 1 to 18, wherein the rackdoes not comprise more posts than the first and the second post.

Example 26

The data center rack of any one of examples 1 to 18, wherein the firstand the second posts are disposed at rear corners of the rack to definea rear plane of the rack.

Example 27

The data center rack of example 26, wherein each of the plurality ofpairs of sled brackets are coupled to the first and the second posts todefine side planes of the rack.

Example 28

The data center rack of example 27, wherein the side planes are openair.

Example 29

The data center rack of example 28, wherein the rack does not comprise ahousing covering the side planes.

Example 30

The data center rack of any one of examples 3 to 18, wherein the sledspace is greater than a conventional rack unit.

Example 31

The data center rack of any one of examples 3 to 18, wherein the sledpace is not an integer multiple of a conventional rack unit.

Example 32

The data center rack of any one of examples 3 to 18, wherein the sledspace is not an integer multiple of 1.75 inches.

Example 33

A system comprising: a sled for a data center, the sled comprising: arack mounting feature; and at least one physical resource; and a rack ofthe data center, the rack comprising: a first post and a second post;and a plurality of pairs of sled brackets, a first sled bracket fromeach of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the firstpost and a second sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets coupled to the second post, each of the plurality of pairsof sled brackets to define a sled space to receive a sled.

Example 34

The system of example 33, the rack comprising a plurality of pairs ofsled retainers, a first sled retainer from each of the plurality ofpairs of sled retainers coupled to the first sled bracket of arespective one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets and a secondsled retainer from each of the plurality of pairs of sled retainerscoupled to the second sled bracket of the respective one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers arranged to couple to the sled.

Example 35

The system of example 34, each of the plurality of pairs of sledretainers arranged to couple to the sled autonomously.

Example 36

The system of example 34, each of the plurality of pairs of sledretainers integrated into a respective one of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets.

Example 37

The system of example 34, wherein the sled is insertable into the sledspace by a robot.

Example 38

The system of example 33, the rack comprising a plurality ofmulti-purpose connector modules (MPCMs), each of the plurality of MPCMsdisposed in a respective one of the plurality of sled spaces.

Example 39

The system of example 38, the rack comprising a plurality of MPCMbrackets coupled to the first and the second posts, the plurality ofMPCM brackets coupled to respective ones of the MPCMs to fix theplurality of MPCMs in an orientation in the sled space.

Example 40

The system of example 38, the rack comprising: an interconnect loomdisposed within at least one of the first or second posts; and aplurality of optical interconnect cables, each of the plurality ofoptical interconnect cables coupled to a respective MPCM of theplurality of MPCMs and routed to the interconnect loom.

Example 41

The system of example 40, each of the plurality of interconnect cablesrouted to the interconnect loom via a plurality of sled space cablingaccess ports defined in the at least one of the first or second posts.

Example 42

The system of example 40, comprising a plurality of power modules, eachof the plurality of power modules configured to supply power to a sledin a respective sled space.

Example 43

The system of example 42, each of the plurality of power modules coupledto a respective first one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets.

Example 44

The system of example 43, comprising a plurality of electrical powercables, each of the plurality of electrical power cables coupled to arespective MPCM of the plurality of MPCMs and a respective power module.

Example 45

The system of example 44, each of the plurality of power modulesconfigured to source alternating current (AC) power and provide directcurrent (DC) power.

Example 46

The system of example 45, the sled comprising a sled side MPCM arrangedto couple to the plurality of rack side MPCMs.

Example 47

The system of example 46, each of the plurality of MPCMs comprising areceptacle arranged to couple to the sled side MPCM.

Example 48

The system of example 47, each of the plurality of MPCMs comprising: anoptical connector arranged to couple to an optical connector of the sledside MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to an optical fabric; and a powerconnector arranged to couple to a power connector of the sled side MPCMto couple the sled side MPCM to a one of the plurality of power modules.

Example 49

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, comprising: an expansionpost disposed between the first and the second post; and a plurality ofexpansion sled brackets coupled to the expansion post, each of theplurality of expansion sled brackets corresponding to a one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality of expansionsled brackets and corresponding one of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets defining an expansion sled space to receive an expansion sledhousing at least one physical resource.

Example 50

The system of example 49, comprising an expansion sled inserted into oneof the expansion sled spaces.

Example 51

The system of example 50, the expansion sled comprising at least onesupplemental physical resource.

Example 52

The system of example 51, comprising an optical interconnect to couplethe at least one physical resource to the at least one supplementalphysical resource.

Example 53

The system of example 34, the sled comprising at least one rack mountingfeature arranged to couple to the rack.

Example 54

The system of example 53, each of the plurality of pairs of sledretainers comprising an alignment track, the alignment track arranged tomechanically couple to the rack mounting feature of the sled tofacilitate autonomously inserting the sled into the sled space definedby the one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets to which the pairof sled retainers is coupled.

Example 55

The system of example 54, the alignment tracks arranged to mechanicallydecouple to the rack mounting feature of the sled to facilitateautonomously removing the sled from the sled space defined by the one ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets to which the pair of sledretainers is coupled.

Example 56

The system of example 33, comprising an optical fabric interconnect tocouple the at least one physical resource of the sled to an opticalfabric.

Example 57

The system of example 40, wherein the plurality of optical interconnectcables are at least partially disposed within the interconnect loom.

Example 58

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, wherein the rack does notcomprise more posts than the first and the second post.

Example 59

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, wherein the first and thesecond posts are disposed at rear corners of the rack to define a rearplane of the rack.

Example 60

The system of example 59, wherein each of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets are coupled to the first and the second posts to define sideplanes of the rack.

Example 61

The system of example 60, wherein the side planes are open air.

Example 62

The system of example 61, wherein the rack does not comprise a housingcovering the side planes.

Example 63

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, wherein the sled space isgreater than a conventional rack unit.

Example 64

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, wherein the sled pace is notan integer multiple of a conventional rack unit.

Example 65

The system of any one of examples 33 to 48, wherein the sled space isnot an integer multiple of 1.75 inches.

Example 68

A method comprising: sending a movement control signal to a robot, themovement control signal to include an indication for the robot to moveproximate to the one of a plurality of physical resources housed in asled in a data center; and sending a manipulation control signal to therobot, the manipulation control signal to include an indication for therobot to physically manipulate the one of the plurality of physicalresources.

Example 69

The method of example 68, comprising receiving a command including anindication to physically manipulate the one of a plurality of physicalresources in a data center;

Example 70

The method of example 68, comprising: receiving the command at therobot; and generating, by a controller of the robot the movement controlsignal and the manipulation control signal.

Example 71

The method of example 70, the physical resource housed on a sled in arack of the data center, the command comprising an indication to removethe sled from the rack.

Example 72

The method of example 71, the command comprising an indication toreplace the removed sled with a sled housing a physical resource of thesame type as the one of the plurality of physical resources.

Example 73

The method of example 72, comprising removing, by a robot, the sled froma sled space of the rack.

Example 74

The method of example 73, comprising inserting, by a robot, areplacement sled into the sled space of the rack.

Example 75

The method of any one of examples 59 to 72, the rack comprising: a firstpost and a second post; and a plurality of pairs of sled brackets, afirst sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketscoupled to the first post and a second sled bracket from each of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the second post, each ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets to define a sled space toreceive a sled.

Example 76

The method of example 75, the sled to house at least one physicalresource.

Example 77

The method of example 75, the rack comprising a plurality of pairs ofsled retainers, a first sled retainer from each of the plurality ofpairs of sled retainers coupled to the first sled bracket of arespective one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets and a secondsled retainer from each of the plurality of pairs of sled retainerscoupled to the second sled bracket of the respective one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers arranged to couple to a sled inserted into the sled spacedefined by a one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets to which thepair of sled retainers is coupled.

Example 78

The method of example 77, each of the plurality of pairs of sledretainers arranged to couple to a sled autonomously inserted into thesled space defined by the one of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketsto which the pair of sled retainers is coupled.

Example 79

The method of example 77, each of the plurality of pairs of sledretainers integrated into a respective one of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets.

Example 80

The method of example 79, the rack comprising a plurality ofmulti-purpose connector modules (MPCMs), each of the plurality of MPCMsdisposed in a respective one of the plurality of sled spaces.

Example 81

The method of example 80, the rack comprising a plurality of MPCMbrackets coupled to the first and the second posts, the plurality ofMPCM brackets coupled to respective ones of the MPCMs to fix theplurality of MPCMs in an orientation in the sled space.

Example 82

The method of example 80, the rack comprising: an interconnect loomdisposed within at least one of the first or second posts; and aplurality of optical interconnect cables, each of the plurality ofoptical interconnect cables coupled to a respective MPCM of theplurality of MPCMs and routed to the interconnect loom.

Example 83

The method of example 82, each of the plurality of interconnect cablesrouted to the interconnect loom via a plurality of sled space cablingaccess ports defined in the at least one of the first or second posts.

Example 84

The method of example 82, the rack comprising a plurality of powermodules, each of the plurality of power modules configured to supplypower to a sled in a respective sled space.

Example 85

The method of example 84, each of the plurality of power modules coupledto a respective first one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets.

Example 86

The method of example 85, the rack comprising a plurality of electricalpower cables, each of the plurality of electrical power cables coupledto a respective MPCM of the plurality of MPCMs and a respective powermodule.

Example 87

The method of example 86, each of the plurality of power modulesconfigured to source alternating current (AC) power and provide directcurrent (DC) power.

Example 88

The method of example 87, each of the plurality of MPCMs comprising areceptacle arranged to couple to a sled side MPCM.

Example 89

The method of example 88, each of the plurality of MPCMs comprising: anoptical connector arranged to couple to an optical connector of the sledside MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to an optical fabric; and a powerconnector arranged to couple to a power connector of the sled side MPCMto couple the sled side MPCM to a one of the plurality of power modules.

Example 90

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, the rack comprising: anexpansion post disposed between the first and the second post; and aplurality of expansion sled brackets coupled to the expansion post, eachof the plurality of expansion sled brackets corresponding to a one ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets, each of the plurality ofexpansion sled brackets and corresponding one of the plurality of pairsof sled brackets defining an expansion sled space to receive anexpansion sled housing at least one physical resource.

Example 91

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, wherein the rack does notcomprise more posts than the first and the second post.

Example 92

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, wherein the first and thesecond posts are disposed at rear corners of the rack to define a rearplane of the rack.

Example 93

The method of example 92, wherein each of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets are coupled to the first and the second posts to define sideplanes of the rack.

Example 94

The method of example 93, wherein the side planes are open air.

Example 95

The method of example 94, wherein the rack does not comprise a housingcovering the side planes.

Example 96

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, wherein the sled space isgreater than a conventional rack unit.

Example 97

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, wherein the sled pace is notan integer multiple of a conventional rack unit.

Example 98

The method of any one of examples 68 to 89, wherein the sled space isnot an integer multiple of 1.75 inches.

Example 99

A method comprising: receiving an information element to includeindications of telemetry metrics for a plurality of physical resourcesin a data center; determining a maintenance operation to includephysically manipulating a one of the plurality of physical resourcesbased on the telemetry metrics; and initiating a command to include anindication for an autonomous apparatus to perform the maintenanceoperation.

Example 100

The method of example 99, comprising: receiving, at the autonomousapparatus, the information element to include the indications oftelemetry metrics for the plurality of physical resources in the datacenter; and determining, by the autonomous apparatus, the maintenanceoperation to include physically manipulating the one of the plurality ofphysical resources based on the telemetry metrics.

Example 101

The method of example 70, the physical resource housed on a sled in arack of the data center, the command comprising an indication to removethe sled from the rack.

Example 102

The method of example 71, comprising removing, by the autonomousapparatus, the sled from a sled space of the rack.

Example 103

The method of example 72, comprising inserting, by the autonomousapparatus, a replacement sled into the sled space of the rack.

Example 104

At least one machine readable medium comprising a plurality ofinstructions that in response to being executed by an autonomousapparatus of a data center, cause the autonomous apparatus to: receive acommand to include an indication to physically manipulate a one of aplurality of physical resources in a data center; send a movementcontrol signal to a robot, the movement control signal to include anindication for the robot to move proximate to the one of the pluralityof physical resources; and send a manipulation control signal to therobot, the manipulation control signal to include an indication for therobot to physically manipulate the one of the plurality of physicalresources.

Example 105

The at least one machine readable medium of example 104, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to: receive the commandat the robot; and generate, by a controller of the robot the movementcontrol signal and the manipulation control signal.

Example 106

The at least one machine readable medium of example 105, the physicalresource housed on a sled in a rack of the data center, the commandcomprising an indication to remove the sled from the rack.

Example 107

The at least one machine readable medium of example 106, the commandcomprising an indication to replace the removed sled with a sled housinga physical resource of the same type as the one of the plurality ofphysical resources.

Example 108

The at least one machine readable medium of example 107, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to remove, by a robot,the sled from a sled space of the rack.

Example 109

The at least one machine readable medium of example 108, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to insert, by a robot,a replacement sled into the sled space of the rack.

Example 110

At least one machine readable medium comprising a plurality ofinstructions that in response to being executed by an autonomousapparatus of a data center, cause the autonomous apparatus to: receivean information element to include indications of telemetry metrics for aplurality of physical resources in a data center; determine amaintenance operation to include physically manipulating a one of theplurality of physical resources based on the telemetry metrics; andinitiate a command to include an indication for an autonomous apparatusto perform the maintenance operation.

Example 111

The at least one machine readable medium of example 110, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to: receive, at theautonomous apparatus, the information element to include the indicationsof telemetry metrics for the plurality of physical resources in the datacenter; and determine, by the autonomous apparatus, the maintenanceoperation to include physically manipulating the one of the plurality ofphysical resources based on the telemetry metrics.

Example 112

The at least one machine readable medium of example 111, the physicalresource housed on a sled in a rack of the data center, the commandcomprising an indication to remove the sled from the rack.

Example 113

The at least one machine readable medium of example 112, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to remove the sled froma sled space of the rack.

Example 114

The at least one machine readable medium of example 113, comprisinginstructions that cause the autonomous apparatus to insert a replacementsled into the sled space of the rack.

Example 115

An apparatus for a rack of a data center, comprising: a sled to house atleast one physical resource, the sled comprising: a multi-purposeconnector module (MPCM) to couple to a MPCP of a rack of a data centerto communicatively couple the at least one physical resource to anoptical fabric; at least one rack mounting feature to mechanicallycouple to a of pairs of sled brackets of the rack of the data center.

Example 116

The apparatus of example 115, the at least one physical resource aphysical compute resource, a physical storage resource, a physicalaccelerator resource, or a physical memory resource.

Example 117

The apparatus of example 115, the MPCM comprising: an optical connectorarranged to couple to an optical connector of the MPCMs of the rack tocouple the MPCM to the optical fabric; and a power connector arranged tocouple to a power connector of the MPCMs of the rack to couple the MPCMto a power module of the rack.

Example 118

A system comprising: a sled for a data center, the sled comprising: aplurality of physical compute resources, the plurality of physicalcompute resources to generate an amount of thermal energy duringoperation; and a rack of the data center, the rack comprising: a firstpost and a second post to define a rear plane of the rack; a pluralityof pairs of sled brackets, a first sled bracket from each of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the first post and asecond sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketscoupled to the second post, each of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets to define side planes of the rack, the side planes of the racknot comprising a housing; and a plurality of fans disposed proximate tothe rear plane of the rack, the plurality of fans to move air across theplurality of physical compute resources to cool the physical computeresources.

Example 119

The system of example 118, wherein each of the plurality of physicalcompute resources are disposed on the sled and proximate to the rearplane of the rack.

Example 120

The system of example 119, wherein the plurality of physical computeresources thermally dissipates between 200 and 300 Watts.

Example 121

The system of example 119, wherein each of the plurality of physicalcompute resources thermally dissipate between 200 and 300 Watts.

Example 121

The system of any one of examples 118 to 121, wherein the sled pace isnot an integer multiple of a conventional rack unit.

Example 122

The system of any one of examples 118 to 121, wherein the sled is lessthan 18 inches deep.

Example 123

The system of any one of examples 118 to 121, wherein the sled isgreater than 5 inches high.

Example 124

The system of any one of examples 118 to 121, wherein the sled isgreater than 20 inches wide.

Example 125

The system of any one of examples 118 to 121, wherein the sled is 18inches wide, 10 inches deep, and 8 inches high.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A data center rack, comprising: a firstpost and a second post; and a plurality of pairs of sled brackets, afirst sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketscoupled to the first post and a second sled bracket from each of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the second post, each ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets to receive a sled.
 2. The datacenter rack of claim 1, each of the plurality of pairs of sled bracketsto define a sled space and comprising, a plurality of pairs of sledretainers, a first sled retainer from each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers coupled to the first sled bracket of a respective one ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets and a second sled retainer fromeach of the plurality of pairs of sled retainers coupled to the secondsled bracket of the respective one of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets, each of the plurality of pairs of sled retainers arranged tocouple to a sled inserted into the sled space defined by a one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets to which the pair of sled retainersis coupled.
 3. The data center rack of claim 2, each of the plurality ofpairs of sled retainers arranged to couple to a sled autonomouslyinserted into the sled space defined by the one of the plurality ofpairs of sled brackets to which the pair of sled retainers is coupled.4. The data center rack of claim 1, comprising a plurality ofmulti-purpose connector modules (MPCMs), each of the plurality of MPCMsdisposed in a respective one of the plurality of sled spaces.
 5. Thedata center rack of claim 4, comprising a plurality of MPCM bracketscoupled to the first and the second posts, the plurality of MPCMbrackets coupled to respective ones of the MPCMs to fix the plurality ofMPCMs in an orientation in the sled space.
 6. The data center rack ofclaim 4, comprising: an interconnect loom disposed within at least oneof the first or second posts; and a plurality of optical interconnectcables, each of the plurality of optical interconnect cables coupled toa respective MPCM of the plurality of MPCMs and routed to theinterconnect loom.
 7. The data center rack of claim 6, each of theplurality of interconnect cables routed to the interconnect loom via aplurality of sled space cabling access ports defined in the at least oneof the first or second posts.
 8. The data center rack of claim 6,comprising a plurality of power modules, each of the plurality of powermodules configured to supply power to a sled in a respective sled space.9. The data center rack of claim 8, each of the plurality of MPCMscomprising: an optical connector arranged to couple to an opticalconnector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to anoptical fabric; and a power connector arranged to couple to a powerconnector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to a one ofthe plurality of power modules.
 10. The data center rack of claim 1,comprising: an expansion post disposed between the first and the secondpost; and a plurality of expansion sled brackets coupled to theexpansion post, each of the plurality of expansion sled bracketscorresponding to a one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets, eachof the plurality of expansion sled brackets and corresponding one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets defining an expansion sled space toreceive an expansion sled housing at least one physical resource.
 11. Asystem, comprising: a sled for a data center, the sled comprising: arack mounting feature; and at least one physical resource; and a rack ofthe data center, the rack comprising: a first post and a second post;and a plurality of pairs of sled brackets, a first sled bracket fromeach of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the firstpost and a second sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets coupled to the second post, each of the plurality of pairsof sled brackets to define a sled space to receive a sled.
 12. Thesystem of claim 11, the rack comprising a plurality of pairs of sledretainers, a first sled retainer from each of the plurality of pairs ofsled retainers coupled to the first sled bracket of a respective one ofthe plurality of pairs of sled brackets and a second sled retainer fromeach of the plurality of pairs of sled retainers coupled to the secondsled bracket of the respective one of the plurality of pairs of sledbrackets, each of the plurality of pairs of sled retainers arranged tocouple to the sled.
 13. The system of claim 12, the rack comprising aplurality of multi-purpose connector modules (MPCMs), each of theplurality of MPCMs disposed in a respective one of the plurality of sledspaces.
 14. The system of claim 13, the rack comprising: an interconnectloom disposed within at least one of the first or second posts; and aplurality of optical interconnect cables, each of the plurality ofoptical interconnect cables coupled to a respective MPCM of theplurality of MPCMs and routed to the interconnect loom.
 15. The systemof claim 14, comprising a plurality of power modules, each of theplurality of power modules configured to supply power to a sled in arespective sled space.
 16. The system of claim 15, comprising aplurality of electrical power cables, each of the plurality ofelectrical power cables coupled to a respective MPCM of the plurality ofMPCMs and a respective power module.
 17. The system of claim 16, each ofthe plurality of power modules configured to source alternating current(AC) power and provide direct current (DC) power.
 18. The system ofclaim 17, the sled comprising a sled side MPCM arranged to couple to theplurality of rack side MPCMs.
 19. The system of claim 18, each of theplurality of MPCMs comprising: an optical connector arranged to coupleto an optical connector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled sideMPCM to an optical fabric; and a power connector arranged to couple to apower connector of the sled side MPCM to couple the sled side MPCM to aone of the plurality of power modules.
 20. The system of claim 11,comprising: an expansion post disposed between the first and the secondpost; and a plurality of expansion sled brackets coupled to theexpansion post, each of the plurality of expansion sled bracketscorresponding to a one of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets, eachof the plurality of expansion sled brackets and corresponding one of theplurality of pairs of sled brackets defining an expansion sled space toreceive an expansion sled housing at least one physical resource. 21.The system of claim 20, comprising an expansion sled inserted into oneof the expansion sled spaces, the expansion sled comprising at least onesupplemental physical resource, the rack comprising an opticalinterconnect to couple the at least one physical resource to the atleast one supplemental physical resource.
 22. A method comprising:sending a movement control signal to a robot, the movement controlincluding an indication for the robot to move proximate to a sled in adata center; and sending a manipulation control signal to the robot, themanipulation control signal including an indication for the robot tophysically manipulate the sled.
 23. The method of claim 22, comprisingreceiving a command including an indication to physically manipulate thesled.
 24. The method of claim 23, the physical resource housed on a sledin a rack of the data center, the command comprising an indication toremove the sled from the rack and replace the removed sled with a sledhousing a physical resource of the same type as the one of the pluralityof physical resources.
 25. The method of claim 24, the commandcomprising an indication to replace the removed sled with a sled housinga physical resource of the same type as the one of the plurality ofphysical resources.
 26. A system comprising: a sled for a data center,the sled comprising a plurality of physical compute resources, theplurality of physical compute resources to generate an amount of thermalenergy during operation; and a rack of the data center, the rackcomprising: a first post and a second post to define a rear plane of therack; a plurality of pairs of sled brackets, a first sled bracket fromeach of the plurality of pairs of sled brackets coupled to the firstpost and a second sled bracket from each of the plurality of pairs ofsled brackets coupled to the second post, each of the plurality of pairsof sled brackets to define side planes of the rack, the side planes ofthe rack not comprising a housing; and a plurality of fans disposedproximate to the rear plane of the rack, the plurality of fans to moveair across the plurality of physical compute resources to cool thephysical compute resources.
 27. The system of claim 26, wherein each ofthe plurality of physical compute resources are disposed on the sled andproximate to the rear plane of the rack.
 28. The system of claim 27,wherein the plurality of physical compute resources thermally dissipatesbetween 200 and 300 Watts or wherein each of the plurality of physicalcompute resources thermally dissipate between 200 and 300 Watts.
 29. Thesystem of claim 28, wherein the sled pace is not an integer multiple ofa conventional rack unit.
 30. The system of claim 29, wherein the sledis less than 18 inches deep, greater than 5 inches high and greater than20 inches wide.